Book Cris! Basimah for your next Event
Make your next event memorable by inviting a belly dancer to get your party started!
Hiring a belly dancer to perform at your event can get your guests energized, enthusiastic and create a buzz that will carry on throughout the party.
Cris! is a professional performer and entertainer with over twenty years of experience dancing in various stages, restaurants, as well as corporate and private events.
Audiences of all ages will be delighted with authentic costumes and traditional music from the Middle East.
Cris! has been featured in Brides Magazine, performing at an Egyptian wedding alongside Egyptian drummer Gamal Gomaa, at the Ritz Carlton Bacara, in Santa Barbara, CA.
Let's get started!
On the tabs below you’ll find information on:
- Event ideas to have a belly dance performance
- Types of Shows we offer
- Group Performances
- Live Music
- Restaurant/Nightclub Gigs
Are you in charge of booking entertainment for your company or group’s next function? Incorporate something new, different, and fun to mesmerize and entertain your guests!
Here are just a few ideas:
- Weddings / Rehearsal Dinner / Bachelorette Party
- Birthdays / Bar Mitzvahs and Bat Mitzvahs / Sweet 16th
- Women’s Parties/ Ladies’ Nights
- Bridal and Baby Showers
- Anniversary
- Graduation
- Corporate events and parties (Staff Parties, Business Functions, Conventions)
- Resort and Hotel Parties
- Theme parties (Arabian, Moroccan, Turkish, etc.)
- Christmas / New Year’s parties
- Educational and Promotional events (Grand Openings, Fundraisers)
- Health and Wellness
- Art Shows
- Housewarming
- Senior Home Events
While we can tailor a performance to the particular needs of your event, here are some package examples:
♦ Classic Belly Dance Routine
The Classic Belly Dance Routine is about 20- 25 minutes in length or less if desired. Cris! usually does “her show” during the first half of the performance and the second half is dedicated to audience participation. Audience participation is optional, but it is always a crowd pleaser and can even help get your guests loose and on the dance floor! Cris! will liven things up and get the party started!
–> Great for birthdays, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, Anniversary, Housewarming, Graduation
–> Price starts at $350
♦ Performance & Lesson Package (*)
This package includes a mini performance plus a belly dance lesson for all your friends/guests. Safe and all-ages dance moves will be taught so everyone will be up on their feet and laughing. About 45-60 minutes in length.
(*) This package can also include just a belly dance lesson.
Cris! can provide hip coin scarves for the participants to wear in class. Tie a scarf on your hips and learn how to move them! Hip scarves may also be purchased as a keepsake if desired.
–> Great for bridal showers, bachelorette parties, corporate events, theme parties
–> Price starts at $450
♦ Weddings
Have the most memorable wedding and guarantee energy at your reception! Performance time and style can be customized to please the bride and groom. Cris! is happy to coordinate costume colors, play special songs, and dance with important guests. Extra time is considered when booking weddings because we understand that uncontrollable events can affect the schedule.
A traditional Middle Eastern wedding procession or Zeffa can be included (at additional cost) as a wonderful way to announce your union to your guests.
–> Also appropriate for rehearsal dinners, corporate events, theme parties
–> Price starts at $450
♦ Duets, Trios or Multiple Dancers
Cris!’ BDL Team can provide multiple dancers for your event. Costume changes and breaks can be incorporated to the entire show.
–> Great for large parties, concerts, corporate events or theme parties
–> Price starts at $850
♦ Restaurants and Nightclubs
A discounted rate is available for venues that have dancing on a regular basis. Please read more under Restaurants and Nightclubs section.
Apply to All Shows
- The performance can be presented as “surprise” for your guests and/or guest-of-honor!
- The performance can include props such as veil, finger cymbals, sword balancing, fan veils, and Wings of Isis (medium to large space needed).
- The performance can include live music for an additional cost. Cris! works mainly with musicians from the UCSB Middle East Ensemble.
- Cris! and her dancers also perform to Folkloric Dances in many styles including Egyptian (Raks Assaya: cane dance), Persian and Debke (Lebanese line dance).
- Tipping: It is the cultural custom to express appreciation of a dance performance with tipping. Unless the host has requested otherwise, the dancer will gladly accept tips. Tips may be tucked into the dancer’s belt, or thrown above her head as a “money shower”.
- For shows with multiple dancers, Cris! only hires experienced dancers.
- Pricing for performances varies depending on: travel time, length of performance, number of sets, number of dancers, and venue.
- Belly Dance performances are appropriate for all ages, so children are always welcome.
Are you a Restaurant or Nightclub Owner/Manager interested in hiring a Belly Dancer?
Having dance performances at your venue is a way to transport your guests to another place through music and dance, in addition to satisfying the senses of your guests through food and drinks.
Many non-Middle Eastern restaurants are also booking belly dancers for their restaurants as a way to attract new customers and keep their existing clientele coming back again and again.
Here are some benefits of having a belly dancer at your venue:
- She helps your restaurant to create an authentic feel, as well as a warm, friendly & entertaining atmosphere. And, as we know, atmosphere is what separates an 8 star restaurant from a 10 star one.
- She promotes your restaurant within her dance studio, through her/their website(s) and at events in and around the area.
- She also encourage people to come to see her and eat at the restaurants where she dances.
- She can help distract customers when service is late (restaurant is busy).
With many American pop culture icons like Shakira and Brittany Spears belly dancing, there’s a large interest in seeing a real belly dancer “live and in person.”
Contact Cris! through the form below to discuss ideas and get a quote.
How to book a Belly Dance Show
Please contact us using the form below and make sure to include the following information in your message:
- Date and Time of your Event
- Location
- Length of performance desired or one of the packages above
- How many guests
Alternatively you can e-mail Cris! at contactBDL at bellydanceland dot com or call 805-685-0058 to provide the information above.
Thank you!
Cris! will work with you to choose the best combination of music, costuming, and dance to make your event memorable and fun for all!
Check our BDL Events Gallery
Booking a Belly Dancer FAQs
First you’ll need to contact us to provide basic details about your event (please see contact form and needed info above) so we can send you a quote.
Once there’s a mutual agreement, a non-refundable deposit will be collected to formalize the booking. The remaining balance is due a week before the show.
In the unlikely event that Cris! must cancel due to extreme illness or emergency, your deposit will be returned in full.
It is always better to book the show sooner than later. If you are flexible about the time that the show begins, last minute shows can often be worked in. However, Saturday nights during the holidays and during wedding/summer season (May – September) tend to be busy.
Cris! will bring her dancing music on a IPOD/IPAD (CD only via request) and the venue should provide a loud sound system (boom boxes are not an option) near the performance area.
Usually Cris! will stay out of sight until the music has begun playing. If there’s a DJ, she may send her playlist in advance to her/him.
Live musicians can be arranged upon request.
Let’s help set the stage for success!
Besides providing a loud and near to performance area stereo, here are a few other important tips:
- A clean and dry dance surface. Grass and uneven pavement are a big no-no.
- A private and secure area for dancer to change and keep her belongings while performing.
- Allow the dancer ample room to perform.
- Guests showing appreciation by clapping with the music and eventual audience participation will only make the occasion more memorable.
- If guests wish to tip the dancer, showering her with bills or an occasional money tucked into the dancer’s belt is customary. Also it can be delivered to her after the show.
Yes. Unless the host has requested otherwise, the dancer will gladly accept tips. Tips may be tucked into the dancer’s belt, or thrown above her head as a “money shower”.
Yes, the belly dance show is family friendly. Children often love to dance too!
Not a problem! Cris! hires only experienced dancers for private events. The BDL Team is a group of beautiful and talented belly dancers who provide big-stage, extravaganza performances for large or smaller venues.
Each dancer not only “dance the part” but also look and act the part of a belly dancer. They are always impeccably groomed from head to toe. They wear beautiful sequined costumes imported from Egypt and Turkey and take great care to maintain the image of a belly dancer for your guests.
Cris! is located in Santa Barbara, California, but she is available for out of town and international events.
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